Do you remember when I shared with you that Elizabeth had caught a bear and took it on the walk with us. Well.. this is "Chopper". Isn't he a big bear?

If you have not yet heard of the milk poisoning in China, I will share a brief bit with you. It is melamine poisoning. The most prevelant place it has been found is in powdered milk, specifically infant formula...evidently even more specifically in the formula that Elizabeth was on for the first 10 1/2 months of her life. The poisoning has been traced back at least 5 years. It can cause kidney stones, kidney failure, and death. It is also something they are fearing will lead to cancer. It has caused many infant deaths. At this point, I am trusting that God has protected both kids from the poisoning. We are in the process of contacting our doctor to have some testing on the kids, specifically Elizabeth. There are no specific symptoms that would cause any doctor to request tests, so right now, we are searching for information that will help determine a reason to have testing done on her. I do not know the formula that Ri was on for his first years of life, but suspect the same for him. We will keep you posted as we find out more information.

In the meantime, as for life in our home...Well, things in the Miller home seem to be changing very quickly. I can't believe that in less then a year, our oldest daughter will be moved out and going to college. That seems so distant and unreal, painful, exciting, crazy... I just don't know what to think about it all. I think she and I are both scared about it all. But as we wait for this new stage in her life, new stages are popping up all around Mark and I. In one weekend, we had 3 kids asking if they could date. Keep in mind that none of our kids have officially dated anyone. Emily is 17, beautiful, and pure. She obediently waited until she was 16 to date.. counting the days down, but when she turned 16, she had seen so much drama from her friends that she decided that she wasn't going to date in high school. Erin has had a few interests and has pushed the envelope a few times, but has respectfully not had a boyfriend. All the kids have known all their life that the rule was NO DATING until 16. Erin is now 16. Sam is 14... so... the rule remains... to his disatifaction, but obedience.

So, with the help of homecoming, our life changed...in one weekend. Emily's young man has pursued her for months. He has been patient, respectful, and caring. He has shown his affections very quietly, through precious and kind acts. Despite her committment NOT to date her senior year in school, she finally gave in and admitted her interest in this young man. And... so.. as the rule has been, a young man who shows desires to date our precious daughters.. must sit and ask their father! Something our girls have known (and even looked forward to) all their life. Of course, they have been told that DAddy would be holding a gun and the boys would be standing right there with weapons of their own through the entire talk (an image that has not left our girls heads).

Despite the warnings to the 2 young men about to approach their interests father... they mustered the courage and accomplished their goal. The first to approach us was Emily's young man. He, a little nervously, asked us if he could date our daughter. Mark was wonderful, kind, considerate, and loving through the entire conversation. So much for an intimidating Dad! (much to the disappointment of his oldest daughter)

The next week, Erin's young pursuer arranged a time to talk with us. Still thinking that her father may be an intimidating brut with a gun. To his relief, Mark was just as wonderful to him as he had been to Mike. Me, on the other hand, sat squirming... waiting for my turn to "intimidate" and remind them of our desires for them. Boy how things change! I thought Mark would be the tough guy and me the sweet, open armed one. Nope....

And as far as Sam goes, he is being very obedient and wonderful. He would like to date, but is respectful enough to not consider it. He asked, we said no, and that was it. What great kids they are! I am thankful for them!

THis is Emily and her "special friend", as my husband likes to say. The word boyfriend is so SCARY! But Mike treats our princess like a princess... so I guess I am ok with him. :) by the way - Em's hair is painted for the party. I wouldn't approve of it otherwise.

THis is Erin and her "special friend". He was her escort for homecoming.


Well.. this is a bit more scary. Nick and Erin dressed up for a halloween party. They wanted something easy, but fun. They decided to be "gothic". I really do NOT like the look, but it was fun watching them get ready. .. especially when Nick had to put on makeup and fingernail polish. :)

I haven't posted in a while about Ri and Elizabeth and their progress. Both are doing incredible. Elizabeth is finally beginning to trust that we will come back. She often chooses, on her own, to stay at our house with the kids or Mamaw's or Grandmas. That is huge progress. Ri is now taking one day of preschool by himself and amazingly, Elizabeth asks me everytime if she can stay. Ri would rather I not leave, though. He cries for about 1 minute and then is totally fine. Elizabeth and I spend the 2 1/2 hours having mommy/daughter time. It is kind of nice for all of us.

As for health, they are both doing great. Elizabeth is finally over the chicken pox. It was a very long drawn out time, but we are done. Ri has had a runny nose for a good week, but nothing else. We are so thankful for their health. It amazes me how God has protected them.

As far as learning things, both pick up things very quickly. Ri amazes me at some of the things he is able to learn and understand. I do think he struggles with attention span. He loves books, but he doesn't want to sit all the way through it. If it is lengthy in words at all, he is trying to turn the page or jumps off my lap. He can tell you any letter and it's sound and can even tell you the beginning of many words. But... colors are an issue. So much so that there are times we begin to wonder if he may be color blind or partially color blind. Time will tell. Of all the kids, Ri reminds me most of Jacob.

Elizabeth knows all her colors, leters and sounds. She can often tell you the letter that begins a word, but not as quick as Ri. She is an incredible pretender with an amazing imagination! She reminds me much of Sam when he was 3 years old. I LOVED that stage!!

Ri LOVES meat.. of any kind; though he calls every meat "chicken". He is still a great fan of noodles (as is Elizabeth). They both like carrots and Elizabeth likes corn... but you can pretty much nix any other vegetable. Lately, they have begun to like eating apples and banannas. They both really like fruit, probably because it is so sweet tasting. They have a great fondness for junk and sweets.

They both ADORE their brothers and sisters. They are the highlight of their days. All of the kids play with them and include them. It still amazes me to see each of the older kids light up as soon as they see either one of the little ones. As soon as they walk in the door, they run to each other. The older ones always kneel down to the little ones level and give them hugs and talk directly to them. It warms my heart. We are so blessed.

Well, there is so much more that I could write, hopefully I will take the time and do it soon. But for now, I need to go spend some time with my little guys.


I have begun to work with some of Emily's pictures. It is amazing how you can take hundreds and only be happy with a few. :( Here are some of the results. I am just trying to think of some new ideas for her. Feel free to let me know what doesn't work! I am just playing around and would love to come up with something good for her.
Emily does not like this one. She thinks that the pictures with 2 pictures on it don't look very good. I was just trying things out. I think I kind of like it.
She prefers this one simply because there is no other picture in it.
Again, Emily does not like the one on the left because of the 2 pictures in it. I liked the black and white and the blue eyes, but am not a real fan of the actual picture. I was just playing around to see what it would like and chose this one to play with. You can see we liked the pose of her laying down. It was one of Em's favorite, so I was using it in several pictures to get different ideas. I really likead the colors in the picture to the right. It was a gorgeous evening, so we ran and got the camera to take some shots.
These 2 pictuers are Em's favorite ones. I like the leaf on her shoulder.

This picture seems to be one of her favorites of all the shots we've taken. I did a lot of different things with it, but only posted these 2 for now. She likes the black and white, but is asking me to make the flower pop out with more color. I haven't done that just yet, but will make it more pink.
Finally, I wanted to see what the wallets would look like with scripture on them. I LOVE the picture of Em walking by the pond.

Well, my recent conversation with my little girl was while we were watching Oliver & Company. First, she noticed the city streets. SHe looked at me and said that we need to go there again. Then she told me that we will when we get another baby. How sweet. She must remember us going to New York when we adopted Ri. Very cute. THen she began to tell me how Oliver needed a family. She told me that he doesn't have a mommy or daddy or brothers and sisters. Then she said how that made her so sad. Then she said we needed to pray for him.

Now.. how cute is that? Oh how my heart melts. SHe is a great imaginer as well. This morning, on our walk outside, she caught a bear. She named him "Chopper". She proceeded to take Chopper on a walk with the rope she found near the pond. Chopper walked with us all morning long, Elizabeth faithfully holding the rope so he wouldn't run off. He was a nice bear, I am told. Then she told me how she had 2 pets. Once was named Ralph. He is a nice dog. And the other is Chopper. Both are difficult for MOmmy to see, but I sure try! The problem came when Ralph got lost in the woods. Elizabeth decided that we needed to stop and pray for Ralph. So we did. Then she let "Chopper" lose and told him to go find Ralph. Sure enough, about 5 minutes later, she announced that Chopper was coming back with Ralph. She praised Chopper for being such a good boy by finding Ralph. Ri then told us that Chatter was lost in the woods as well. So Ri went off running into the woods and then quickly ran back holding Chatter in his hands (funny, Chatter is a 6 foot Chipmunk mascot from church).

We had a wonderful day yesterday. It was such a beautiful day that I was determined to get a few family pictures. We really need to update the one we currently have over our fireplace! Here are a few shots. The kids were having so much fun. It was one of those afternoons that all you can do is smile and rejoice in your family :)

The joys of discovering new things. I love the country and all the things that there are to explore. Sam discovered an exciting insect to show the little ones. They were very intrigued.



And so... here is the cool bug....

Ri cracked me up. He is constantly stopping in his tracks, making up some pose, and asking me to take his picture. This is one in a long series of funny faces.
Mark helped Ri up on this rock. He thought he was something!
Elizabeth was not about to be showed up. She had to stand on the rock as well.










God has laid a few very special people on my heart lately. I have found myself going before my Lord more often, asking for the souls of these precious people to be saved. This excerpt meant a lot to me this morning:

What Is Saving Faith, by John Piper (From Desiring God)
That is what we need to hear this morning about faith. Faith sees the promised future that God offers - some now, mostly later - and “desires” it. Dwell on this for a moment. There are many people who water down what saving faith is by making it a mere decision with no change of what one “desires” and “seeks.” But the point of this text is that living and dying by faith means having new desires and seeking new satisfactions. Verse 14: they were seeking a different kind of country than this world offered. Verse 16: they were desiring something better than what earthly existence, as we know it, could offer. They had been so gripped by God that nothing short of heaven - or what heaven could make out of earth by God’s presence on it - would satisfy.

What is faith? It is seeing the promises of God from afar and experiencing a change of values so that you desire the promises above what the world has to offer. It is a glad greeting of those promises from a distance and a heart- seeking to know them and cherish them and be satisfied by them so that a new kind of life emerges that is out of sync with the world - like we said last week: a life that builds an ark in the desert and leaves the securities of home and builds a crib when you are ninety.

Here's the Scripture he's using, Hebrews 11:14-16

14 For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. 15 And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.

I finally have been diagnosed... and I laughed and laughed about it. This is SO me! I got this in an email this morning and just had to share it. Especially for my kids who one day will cherish my journaling (I hope).

AAADD - KNOW THE SYMPTOMS.....
Thank goodness there's a name for this disorder.
Somehow I feel better,even though I have it!!

Recently, I was diagnosed with A.A.A.D.D. -
Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.
This is how it manifests:

I decide to water my garden.

As I turn on the hose in the driveway,
I look over at my car and decide it needs washing.

As I start toward the garage,
I notice mail on the porch table that
I brought up from the mail box earlier.

I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car.

I lay my car keys on the table,
put the junk mail in the garbage can under the table,
and notice that the can is full.

So, I decide to put the bills back
on the table and take out the garbage first.

But then I think,
since I'm going to be near the mailbox
when I take out the garbage anyway,
I may as well pay the bills first.

I take my check book off the table,
and see that there is only one check left.

My extra checks are in my desk in the study,
so I go inside the house to my desk where
I find the can of Coke I'd been drinking.

I'm going to look for my checks,
but first I need to push the Coke aside
so that I don't accidentally knock it over.

The Coke is getting warm,
and I decide to put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold.

As I head toward the kitchen with the Coke,
a vase of flowers on the counter
catches my eye--they need water.

I put the Coke on the counter and
discover my reading glasses that
I've been searching for all morning.

I decide I better put them back on my desk,
but first I'm going to water the flowers.

I set the glasses back down on the counter,
fill a container with water and suddenly spot the TV remote.
Someone left it on the kitchen table.

I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV,
I'll be looking for the remote,
but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table,
so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs,
but first I'll water the flowers.

I pour some water in the flowers,
but quite a bit of it spills on the floor.

So, I set the remote back on the table,
get some towels and wipe up the spill.

Then, I head down the hall trying to
remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day:

the car isn't washed

the bills aren't paid

there is a warm can of Coke sitting on the counter

the flowers don't have enough water,

there is still only 1 check in my check book,

I can't find the remote,

I can't find my glasses,

and I don't remember what I did with the car keys.

Then, when I try to figure out why nothing got done today,
I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day,
and I'm really tired.

I realize this is a serious problem,
and I'll try to get some help for it,
but first I'll check my e-mail....

It has been a busy weekend, despite the fact that life has slowed down. Erin finished soccer tonight and Sam was done on Thursday last week. Jacob has a few games left and then we will have some time to relax and breathe. Friday night we enjoyed an evening with a wonderful family. Every year, they have an incredible party to celebrate the fun of the season. Ri and Elizabeth had a great time. There was a wonderful inflatable moonwalk (or at least that is what I called them as a kid) for the little ones to enjoy. It was a highlight. But the biggest fun was watching their eyes light up each time they brought out a new surprise for the kids. Just about every 20-30 minutes, they presented a new "glow toy" for the kids. It was fun to watch. My favorite was the glowing cups. I have never seen anything quite like them. Elizabeth and Ri thought they were so cool to drink out of. Even the straws had glow stuff in them. I think Jacob liked the straws the best. It took a while to figure out they glowed, but once we did, we had a lot of fun with them. I truly enjoyed listening to all the kids run around squealing with excitement as they ran around with a new glow stick or toy and playing all kinds of pick up games.

Saturday, I spent the morning taking Senior pictures for a friend. Mark and the kids spent the morning burning wood piles from the pond. For those of you who do not know, we are in the process of building a pond. It has been a dream of Mark's for 12 years. I have such joy watching him as he watches it take place. He has worked so hard and given, given, given of himself for the kids and I.... It is nice to finally see him get something that has meant so much to him and he has waited so long for. Here is a progression of the pictures from the building of our pond. From the beginning until today:
















The rest of the Satuday was spent at Jacob's soccer game and then spending the evening with some good friends by the fire. Sunday, we spent the morning at church and headed to Mamaw's for the afternoon, finishing our day at church. Here are some pictures from Mamaw's.
Uncle Paul doesn't get these kind of snuggles too often, but when he does, he soaks it all up! Just check out her face!
JAcob told us that he would like to go to WAshington with us as a family.. but then decided it would be even better to go with his Uncle.
She loves her Uncle Paul!
This is our precious, precious neice.. Lydia. She adores Emily and Emily adores her!
Our other adorable neice..Chloe.... sitting in the middle shielding her eyes from the wind. They love riding Mamaw and Papaw's golf cart.

The kids were watching 3-2-1 Penguins this morning when I heard Grandma telling the kids they needed to take turns. Instead of yelling at them, she quietly stopped them and then remembered a scripture from the Bible. It was: A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man displays folly. (Proverbs 14:29)

That verse really drew my attention. It seems that so often I find my self being quick-tempered. Then, with nothing but anger and frustration, I come down hard on my kids for their quick-temperedness towards one another. It really shouldn't surprise me that they are that way, especially if I am the example they have. I use to be very patient, but far too often... now-a-days... I find myself getting angry and harsh. I easily attributed it mostly to having 2 toddlers, a preteen and 3 teenagers... and being exhausted. But the honest truth of the matter is that my walk with the Lord tends to be shoved aside with the chaos of the days. When I open the word of God and spend time with Him, I tend to be much more patient and kind.

Yesterday, the kids and I spent some time at the playground while we were waiting for Sam's game to begin. Here are a few pictures from it:



This picture is a result of our letter Gg hunt. The other day, we found the letter G, but not the g. I have to admit, I wasn't able to find a very good g.... so I fudged this one. I am working on finding a natural one. I found a couple that might have worked...but they were stretches of my imagination. You know - Mark is beginning to think I'm sick. I think I agree. I can't go on a walk anymore without looking for a letter somewhere in nature. I look more at the shapes of trees, the bark in trees, leaves, rocks, bugs, flowers... it's crazy!
While we were on our letter Gg walk, Elizabeth suddenly pretended that their were wolves. AFter a while of pretending to attack the wolves, she decided to be one. Here is the prettiest wolf I've ever seen. ;)

I was talking with someone over the weekend and the conversation reminded me how I should praise God, without ceasing, for my in-laws. We were talking about a mother-in-law who despises her daughter-in-law and assuming that the reverse is true. I can't imagine the pain of that kind of relationship and the difficulties that it must add to your marriage.

When I met Mark, my life did not reflect Christ in any way. I wasn't seeking God, I wasn't desiring to live for Him, I was living for myself. The person I was before I met Mark... actually before I truly gave my life over to the Lord, is a completely different person. I am definitely an example of a new creature in Christ. I say that because it would be easy to think that I somehow deserved the gift God has given me in my in-laws.... at least if I were walking with God at the time I met Mark, I might easily take for granted that I have wonderful in-laws. But I wasn't. THere wasn't anything about me that was good. So, I can do nothing less but realize that God blessed me with grace and mercy.

You see, I love my mother-in-law as if she were my mother. She is everything to me. I can't imagine life without her. I love being with her, I love her advice, I love her love! She is someone I look up to, someone I adore, someone I respect. She radiates the love of Christ. In the 18 years that Mark and I have been together, I can't think of a time when she was no my nerves or that I didn't want to see her. I have looked to her, far more times then I could ever begin to count, for wisdom and advice. She has taught me so much by example. My mother-in-law is one of my heros.

But she is not the only one of Mark's family that I love more then life. Mark has a wonderful family as well as an extended family. They all opened their arms wide when I came into Mark's life. They loved me despite some of the choices I made before I met Mark. They shared with me the love of Christ. But there are 4 whom have intricately intwined their lives into mine. I am forever indebted to their love.

My sister-in-law is not really that... she is more my sister then I could ever imagine a sister being. She is my friend and she, also, is my hero. If I were to ask for an Aunt to my kids that would meet my dreams; she would far surpass it. I can not tell you the countless times that she has been there for us. Her laughter, her smile, her love all are given freely. She opens her arms, her heart, and her home to my children and to me. For me, she is a seocnd mom to my children. I would trust her with their lives. She is such a beautiful role model for my girls. Oh how I love this woman! And.. oh how I thank GOd for her in my life. I am truly blessed.




And for those of you who might remember, our son, Ri, was given the American name Paul. It is his namesake that I adore with all that I have. Uncle Paul, as we affectionately call him, is another one of Mark's family with whom I love as a brother. He has been there for us through every step we have taken. Like is mom and his sister, he has truly given his life to our children. He adores them! I can count on the fact that Paul is lifting the kids before the Lord daily. He hops in the car and comes at a moments notice. If one of the kids is hurt or sick, he (as well as the others)is in the car on his way. He drops everything for us when we need him. There are countless times that he has heard the kids mention something they wanted or needed, and despite his situation, he is at our door bestowing the gift upon the kids. He amazes me. I am so thankful for his part in our lives.

And I could never leave out one of my favorite men. I absolutely adore this man. I can remember ever hearing a criticism of anyone out of his mouth. What an example he sets! He is wild and crazy and he scares us all to death with some of his decisions :) ... but that is just who he is... and I love every part of who he is.
He simply makes me smile. He'd do anything for his kids.. and what is cool is that he considers me one of his kids. I love that!



And how could I ever leave out Mark's brother, Alan? It was Alan who set up a blind date between Mark and I. If it weren't for Alan seeing something in me that might spark in interest in his brother, I might still be floundering in my life and walking in the ways of the world. I am forever grateful!

I could go on and on about all of Mark's family. I love them all. I treasure them and pray that God will allow many more years with them